


Curiosity

by Rhaiye



Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Bad Wolf Bay, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-31
Updated: 2016-08-31
Packaged: 2018-08-12 06:34:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 781
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7924309
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rhaiye/pseuds/Rhaiye
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Doctor's last moments with Rose at Bad Wolf Bay.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Curiosity

There they stood, he and Rose, wind whipping at their hair and the sand smooth beneath their feet. Bad Wolf Bay. Fate was never what it seemed to be. She would never know the effort that he was going through to keep a calm demeanor. He truly believed that it would hurt them both more if he allowed the gut-wrenching sorrow to surface. In an effort to look at the better points of the situation, he muttered "Still got Mr. Mickey, then." That sounded good. Almost light-hearted.

Rose almost smiled through the distress. "There's five of us now. Mum, Dad, Mickey and… the baby."

Just like that, the Doctor felt as if someone had socked him in the stomach (and to be honest, he was nine hundred years old, so he knew exactly what that felt like). He needed to gasp for air, or be sick, and he wasn't sure which one. There were two options available, the rational part of his brain told him. The emotional part told him that neither were acceptable. First off, it might be Mickey's. Not exactly satisfactory. Mickey seemed like a good man, but the Doctor always thought Rose would end up with someone… else. Was he jealous? In these last few moments, he could admit to that, so perhaps he was jealous. Unfortunately, the only other option existing was that Rose's child was _his_ ; the Doctor's.

At the words 'the baby', the Doctor had a fleeting vision of Dihadlean, home of the Cissotorates. He and Rose had done the usual (with the help of a couple of the locals, he supposed): defeated the alien insurgents that were bent on destroying the planet. Dihadlean had the most beautiful sky Rose had ever seen, she'd told him as they lay in the grass drinking some sort of fruity tasting cocktail type thing. How he'd wished he could've shown her the Gallifreyan sky… The drink was mildly alcoholic, and she'd kissed him in the dim light. His oral perception was fantastic, and he knew that she wasn't actually drunk. After a moment, he'd dismissed it. If she wanted to pretend to be drunk and kiss him, that was okay with him. Long story short, it turned into something that the Doctor had never intended, regardless of how he felt about Rose. It had ended with the most awkward moment he had ever had with her, centered around getting dressed and hoofing it back to the Tardis, where he quickly distracted the both of them from the one thing they couldn't think about.

After what seemed like hours just staring at her in shock (but in reality was only a few seconds) one corner of his mouth tipped up just the tiniest bit and he said "You're not." Question or statement, he couldn't be sure. What was he hoping for? If it was his… No, no, it couldn't be his. He almost didn't want to know if it was his. His child with a woman that he'd fallen madly in love with, and he would never see either of them again. This would be it. This would be the last time he would spend with his child. He felt like screaming, like crying, like pleading with the universe. The time between his question and her answer was some of the most painful moments he had ever experienced throughout his nine hundred years. It would be better if it was Mickey's, he decided. The child would have a father. That's more than I could give to Rose and her baby.

Rose laughed just the tiniest bit. "No." She said finally. "Mum. Three months gone, more Tyler's on the way."

Relief washed over the Doctor like a wave of ocean brine, strongly laced with disappointment, although to be perfectly honest, he had no right to be disappointed. He had escaped the guilt that would accompany the situation; the guilt of not being there for his love and her child. Still though... Nothing practical could stop him wanting the most normal of lives with the most beautiful of women he'd ever known.

It seemed his entire life was tied up in mixed emotions, everything from the Time War to Rose having his child. He just wished it would all stop, because all he'd ever, _ever_ , wanted was for everything he saw to be crystal clear. It never was, though, and so he'd move forward and continue making choices. Some of them would be right, some of them would be wrong, but there was no one to judge him anyway. His kind was dead and Rose was gone forever.

Life would always move forward, whether he was ready for it or not.


End file.
